Article Posted on : - Apr 28, 2011

The Soyuz rocket lifts off carrying the Progress spacecraft. A Roscosmos photo

BAIKONUR (BNS): As NASA space shuttle Endeavour gets ready for its final space mission tomorrow, Russia's Progress unmanned cargo spacecraft has headed to the International Space Station on a supply mission.

Federal space agency Roscosmos on Wednesday successfully launched the Progress M-10M spaceship to the ISS.

The spacecraft was launched by a Soyuz-U rocket. The three-stage rocket blasted off from the Baikonur cosmodrome, Kazakhstan at 1305 GMT (1705 local time).

The lift-off mass for the spacecraft was 7290 kg, Roscosmos said.

The space capsule, carrying 2.6 tons of cargo, including fuel, water, food, medical and scientific equipment for the five-member ISS crew, is scheduled for automated docking with the Russian Pirs module of the space station at 1429 GMT on Friday. 

The Russian segment of the orbital space lab was vacated by the Progress M-09M space frieghter which had undocked from it last Friday.

Wednesday’s launch is the second Progress space freighter launch by Russia this year. The country plans to send six Progress ships to the ISS in 2011.